Staten Island Neighborhood Profile: Pleasant Plains

In 1860, the Staten Island Railroad Company began to operate a railroad line on the South Shore of the Island between Clifton, which was at the time known as Vanderbilt's Landing, and Tottenville. On this line was a station located at Penton Street and Amboy Road, which the company named as Pleasant Plains. Soon after, a community sprouted around the station. This community soon bore the name of the train station.

Pleasant Plains' most well-known feature was birthed in 1882. Just to give you a little background, in 1871, Reverend John Christopher Drumgoole established the Mission of the Immaculate Virgin in Manhattan, which was created to help newsboys who were homeless. A little more than a decade later, he purchased 120 acres of farmland in the community of Pleasant Plains. Eventually, more land was purchased until his property was equivalent to 400 acres. Here, he established the Mission of the Immaculate Virgin at Mount Loretto, which was used mostly as an orphanage for these boys.

By 1888, an heir of Reverend John Christopher Drumgoole had a building constructed on the land. This six-story building became known as St. Elizabeth's Building. It was used as an orphanage for girls in its prime. Eventually, the building saw many years of abandonment. By 2000, the entirety of the building was destroyed in a fire.

In 1999, 194 acres of the land were sold to the State of New York, who in turn called upon the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to maintain it. The park is inhabited by a number of different types of vegetation. Aside from the birds and critters that live in the flora, there are a number of species that live exclusively by the shore, which is about one mile in length.

There are, of course, a number of options for shopping in the neighborhoods surrounding Pleasant Plains. This includes the nearby Bricktown Shopping Centre in Charleston, which has a Target and Home Depot, in addition to a few other stores and restaurants. Right by the Pleasant Plains train station, however, is the community's own shopping center, Amboy Plaza. Among the many stores are Waldbaum's, a supermarket which makes food shopping easy for any resident of the neighborhood.

Aside from the train station spoken of earlier, there are a couple of other ways to get around in the neighborhood. First of all, there are a few local buses and an express bus which all serve the community from various streets and bus stops. Along Annadale Road, you may find the s55, which travels to Rossvilleand the Staten Island Mall. Along Hylan Boulevard, you can take the s59, which travels to Port Richmond and Tottenville, or the s78, which travels to the St. George Ferry Terminaland the Bricktown Mall. On Amboy Road, you can also catch the x22 express bus, which takes the Goethals Bridge to get into Midtown Manhattan.

In 1928, another addition to the already convenient transportation methods was established. On June 29th of that year, the Outerbridge Crossing opened. While it may not be so convenient for commuters who use public transportation, it has served as a quite useful crossing for people who need to get where they need to go. The Outerbridge Crossing, though thought to be named for it being the southernmost bridge in the State of New York, was actually named for the Port of New York Authority's first Chairman, Eugenius H. Outerbridge. It connects with the Richmond Parkway, another useful feature of the neighborhood's many transportation services.

There are several great schools for your children to attend in and around the Pleasant Plains community. Among the closest public schools are P.S. 3, at 80 South Goff Avenue; P.S. 6, at 555 Page Avenue; I.S. 34, at 528 Academy Avenue; and Tottenville High School, at 100 Luten Avenue. The St. Joseph/St. Thomas School, at 50 Maguire Avenue, and the Our Lady Help of Christians School, at 23 Summit Street, are just a couple of the Catholic schools in the area. Some other private schools nearby are Gateway Academy, at 200 Boscombe Avenue, and Yeshiva of Staten Island, at 1870 Drumgoole Road East.